PG&E, 365 Main Reduce Energy Use

January 8, 2008 -- (WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) -- Data center operator 365 Main (365main.com) announced on Tuesday that it has significantly reduced power consumption over the summer of 2007 and has saved $54,000 in utility costs at its San Francisco, California data center. 365 Main says it achieved these results as a second-year participant in Pacific Gas and Electric Company's (pge.com) Critical Peak Pricing Program.

PG&E's voluntary CPP program is designed to curtail energy load during the summer to offset the possibility of an energy emergency. The utility offers seasonal discounts to single-building customers that reduce or shift their energy usage away from peak periods. In total, 365 Main saved 7,477kWh during the CPP events in 2007 when the company was able to curtail power usage below its energy-consumption baseline.

"We are pleased to participate in PG&E's CPP program as one part of our overall energy management efforts and look forward to continuing our participation in 2008," says Jean Paul Balajadia, VP of engineering at 365 Main. "365 Main is serious about our commitment to improving energy management in the data center, and the CPP program allows us to pursue that cause."

CPP events are generally triggered by temperature but may also be activated by PG&E as warranted by extreme system conditions, says the company. PG&E customers that belong to the CPP program are given financial incentives to reduce or shift their energy usage away from peak periods during CPP events. During a CPP event, electric rates for these customers are higher than average during the 72 annual CPP event hours, but electric rates are lower than normal on all non-event days during the summer, which starts May 1 and ends October 31.

365 Main recently joined IBM on a panel discussion at the first annual Hollywood Goes Green conference.